Adjustable cot and headrest for burial caskets



A ril 1, 1930; J. B. COLE ADJUSTABLE COT AND HEADREST FOR BURIAL GASKETS Filed Nov. 12, 1928 Patented Apr. 1, 1930 UNITED STATES .IJSBJW JAMES .B. COLE, or r/rEMPnIsannnn-ssnr.

ADJUSTABLE cor AND nnnnnasr FOB. BUR'IAL cAs ETs' Application filed Nov-ember 12, 192a. Serial no. 318.344.

This invention relates to burial caskets and more particularly to head rests for use'there- Heretofore, where ordinary cushions have been employed, it has been difficult to prevent the body from slipping out of proper pos1- tion while the casket is being transported over long distances.

The present invention has for an object the provision of a resilient supporting structure or cot which can be adjusted upwardly and downwardly within the casket so as to properly hold a body of any size.

It is also an object to provide a head restv which is of simple construction and can be adjusted readily to support the head in any desired position.

lVith the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts andin the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, 'it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings,

Figure 1 is a vertical transverse section through a casket having the present improve ments, a part of the cot being broken away to show one of the head rest supports in engagement with the cot.

Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section through portions of the casket and the cot therein.

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view .of one o the cot supporting fasteners.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates a casket which'can be of any desired material and to the inner surfaces of the sides of the casket adjacent each r end are secured supporting plates 2 each of which has a vertical series of apertures 3 therein, the wall of each aperture being curved inwardly and upwardly as shown particularly in Figure 1. Mounted for up and down sliding movement between the plates dicated at 5.

bolts 6 mounted in guides 7 and provided with springs 8 whereby the'bolts are normally projected into the'adjacent apertures 3. Obviously, by pulling upwardly on the cot, the bolts can be caused to bear against the rounded upper walls of the apertures in which they are seated so as thus to be retracted and subsequently released. In this way the cot can be elevated to a. desired position where it will be held by the bolts seated in the apertured plates 2. A head rest 9 is located above one end portion of the cot, there being arcuate supporting strips 10 pivotally connected to the respectlve ends of the head rest and extending downwardly therefrom into apertures 11 formed in one end of the cot frame. These supporting strips are formed with ratchet teeth 12 on their outer or convex edges and said teeth that, when the head rest is drawn upwardly, the strips 10 will slide upwardly within the aperturesll. Said strips, hot ever, will gravitate into engagement with one wall of each aperture, thus to support the head rest after it has been raised. When it is desired to lower the'head rest it is neces sary to swing the strips 10 toward each other so as to disengage the teeth from the walls of the apertures and thus allow the strips to move downwardly relative to the cot frame.

When the head rest is not in use it will be supported on the cot as shown by dotted lines in Figure 1 with the toothed strips 10 extended toward each other within the cot structure.

Obviously a device such as described can be adjusted readily to properly support bod-' ies of different sizes and to hold the heads in desired positions. The entire structure can of course be lowered simply by withdrawing the bolts 6 against the action of the springs 8 and allowing the cot to gravitate to a desired point. i

What i 'claimed is:

The combination with a casket of supporting plates, a cot mounted for up and down adjustment between the plates, means carried by the cot for engaging the plates to support the cot at a desired elevation within the casket, said means and plates cooperating to permit upward movement of the cot relative tothe casket but to prevent downward movement of said cot, a head restyo'pposed arcuate toothed strips piv-otally connected to the head rest and slidable within one end portion of the cot, and means cooperating with the toothed strips for supporting the head rest at a desired elevation relative to the cot, said strips being foldable toward each other and within the cot when the head rest-islOwered.

Intestimony that I- claim the: foregoin as my own, I have" hereto aflix'ed my" signature. JAMES B. COLE. 

